Doctors warn of the dangers of ‘the Jeremy Clarkson diet’ – as the Top Gear legend reveals heart scare that left him days from death

Jeremy Clarkson shocked fans this week after revealing a heart scare left him ‘days away from death’. 

The Grand Tour presenter, who had to undergo emergency surgery to avoid an impending heart attack, said he began feeling unwell on holiday.

But after returning to his Cotswolds farm — the subject of his Amazon Prime series Clarkson’s Farm — the 64-year-old became ‘clammy’, felt ‘a tightness in [his] chest’ and had ‘pins and needles’ in his left arm.

After seeking medical help Clarkson was told by doctors a potentially fatal heart attack was ‘maybe’ days away, and he had a stent fitted to keep the arteries open. 

So what do we know about the diet and lifestyle of the 6ft 5ins broadcaster that might have put him at risk — and what do experts say we could learn from his mistakes?

Last year, the motoring journalist admitted he ‘drinks far too much wine’, with his partner Lisa Hogan later revealing the pair ‘usually get through at least two bottles a night’

Last year he said: ‘To me, not drinking is like doing a handstand. It’s technically possible for a little while, but a week?’

Alcohol

Last year, the motoring journalist admitted he ‘drinks far too much wine’, with his partner Lisa Hogan later revealing the pair ‘usually get through at least two bottles a night’. 

In 2015, a temporary self-imposed drinking ban saw the former Top Gear host save himself £500 a week.

But last year he told The Sunday Times: ‘To me, not drinking is like doing a handstand. It’s technically possible for a little while, but a week?’

The NHS recommends people drink no more than 14 units of alcohol — around six glasses of wine, or pints of beer — per week.

So Clarkson’s two-bottles-a-night habit easily bust this limit, potentially stacking up to 70 units a week. 

Scientists across the board agree that excessive alcohol consumption can permanently damage the liver, cause an array of cancers and drive up blood pressure.

It puts a strain on the heart muscle and can lead to cardiovascular disease (CVD), which increases your risk of heart attack and stroke. 

Binge drinking — sometimes defined by consuming five drinks within two hours —can make the heart beat irregularly, triggering symptoms including breathlessness, tiredness and increased blood pressure. 

The World Health Organisation estimate alcohol kills three million people around the world each year.

The NHS recommends people drink no more than 14 ‘units’ of alcohol — around six glasses of wine, or pints of beer — per week

The UK’s wine consumption has soared: It now accounts for over a third of all alcohol consumed across the country and sits almost level with beer 

The Who Wants To Be A Millionaire host last year also admitted that while he tries ‘occasionally to be good’, men ‘cannot live on melons and beetroot alone’. Pictured, with partner Lisa Hogan in 2017

Yo-yo dieting  

Clarkson has long documented his attempts to shed the pounds and overhaul his lifestyle in a bid to ‘get fit’ and active. 

He has never shared exactly how much he has weighed at his heaviest. 

But in 2019, he admitted to losing an impressive two stone after taking up a strict diet of salads and cycling during a trip to Vietnam. 

‘They just have a better diet out there,’ he told The Jonathan Ross Show.

Months later, however, he piled the weight ‘back on — and a little bit more’ after ordering ‘500 cases of rose [wine]’ and ‘just sitting in and drinking it’ during lockdown. 

In August 2022, after realising none of his shirts ‘fit any longer’, he said he had installed a make-shift gym in his ‘garden room’ and recruited an instructor vowing to lose weight. 

Another health scare last October also saw him lose a stone after he underwent an operation to remove a cyst from his back.

But the Who Wants To Be A Millionaire host last year also admitted that while he tries ‘occasionally to be good’, men ‘cannot live on melons and beetroot alone’.

Losing weight rapidly, only to pile it all back on again — yo-yo dieting — is a trap many fall into.

One survey found 60 per cent of slimmers will try up to 20 diets in their lifetime, and still fail to keep the pounds off. 

Yet, this method has long been blamed for a range of health issues including hormone imbalances and osteoporosis. 

A 2022 US study also found yo-yo dieting could raise the risk of heart disease and diabetes later in life as repeated weight loss and gain worsened heart and kidney function.

Experts believe the strain successive bouts of weight gain put on the body is to blame.  

Celebrities including Renee Zellweger and Christian Bale have complained about the health impacts of yo-yo dieting after putting on or losing weight for roles.

Zellweger said her body was ‘whacked’ by the end of filming Bridget Jones and she had a panic attack worrying about putting on weight over a short period of time.

And Bale said he became ‘very sick’ after putting on weight after dropping to 121lbs (55kg) for the 2004 film The Machinist.

Semaglutide, tirzepatide and liraglutide — the active ingredient in drugs including Mounjaro, Ozempic and Wegovy — have been hailed as a monumental breakthrough in the war on obesity

A 2022 US study also found yo-yo dieting could raise the risk of heart disease and diabetes later in life as repeated weight loss and gain worsened heart and kidney function

Writing in his Sunday Times column, the Grand Tour host said: ‘I drink far too much wine, I eat far too many slabs of Cadbury ‘s Fruit & Nut chocolate and I drink a litre of milk before going to bed every night. Unless there’s a beer in the fridge. In which case I’ll have that instead’

Ozempic 

In early 2023 Clarkson revealed he was now taking a ‘magic’ fat-busting drug in a bid to lose weight and avoid type 2 diabetes.

The former Top Gear host, 62, claimed Ozempic was already having a ‘tremendous’ effect.

Taken as an injection given once a week, the drug — which the star described as being ‘genuinely incredible’ — drastically suppresses appetite, helping people beat the bulge by shovelling in less food.

Writing in his Sunday Times column, the Grand Tour host said: ‘I drink far too much wine, I eat far too many slabs of Cadbury’s Fruit & Nut chocolate and I drink a litre of milk before going to bed every night. 

‘Unless there’s a beer in the fridge. In which case I’ll have that instead.’

But after taking the jab, ‘I can open the fridge, where there’s half a chicken and a juicy bottle of rose, and I want neither’, he added. 

‘Of course, I’ll have to insert some balance in the future, or I’ll, you know, die. But for now it’s tremendous.’

Earlier this year, however, he admitted he ‘Didn’t lose any weight on it’ and was ‘just getting fatter’.

And just last month, ahead of the final episode of The Grand Tour he revealed he was ‘too old and fat to get into the cars I like’.

Semaglutide is ineffective in around 10 to 15 per cent of people — so-called non-responders. 

The drug can also cause side effects that vary in both frequency and severity. 

Problems include nausea, constipation, diarrhoea, fatigue, a racing heart, stomach pain, headaches and dizziness, which may make patients quit the drug. 

Bizarre symptoms, such as hair loss, have also been reported among some patients.

Research shows that even patients who lose large amounts of weight thanks to the jabs put it back on again when they stop treatment. 

This has led experts to suggest Ozempic and similar drugs must be taken for life in order for them to work.  

Clarkson admitted the procedure to fit a stint wasn’t ‘especially painful’ but said it did feel ‘odd’

Clarkson suffered a health scare in 2017 which led the presenter to quit smoking after being a heavy smoker for more than 40 years

Red Meat 

Discussing his failed to attempt to stave off the pounds using Ozempic, Clarkson this year also admitted it was because he was ‘surrounded by all this great food’.

In one recent interview he said: ‘Yesterday morning we had boar bacon. Good God, you can’t not eat it. Then there’s the venison: delicious. Lisa is growing potatoes like crazy.’ 

‘I was going for a walk yesterday and had to stop, I was so exhausted. But my lungs are probably cleaner.’

In 2015, Clarkson was infamously sacked by the BBC after punching Top Gear producer Oisin Tymon during a late night row at a hotel in North Yorkshire. 

The presenter left Mr Tymon with a bloody lip for reportedly failing to have his steak supper ready after filming. 

It’s long been suspected that eating too much can raise the risk of heart disease and some types of cancer.

Although a good source of protein, vitamins and minerals, including iron, zinc and B vitamins, red meat contains a type of iron called haem. 

Large amounts of this nutrient in the diet have been linked to an increased risk of bowel cancer and type 2 diabetes.  

Eating too much saturated fat can lead to an increased risk of obesity, itself a risk factor for diabetes. 

And some studies have linked too much salt, which is found in high amounts in processed meats like bacon, to type 2 diabetes risk, although the evidence is not conclusive. 

Type 2 diabetes increases the risk of heart attacks and strokes, although Carlson has never admitted to having the condition. 

Many experts say in moderation red meat — rather that processed meats — can form part of a healthy diet.  

Almost 4.3 million people now have type 2 diabetes. Another 850,000 people have it without knowing, say experts. 

So what do we know about the diet and lifestyle of the 6ft 5ins broadcaster that might have put him at risk — and what do experts say we could learn from his mistakes?

Smoking 

Clarkson suffered a health scare in 2017 which led the presenter to quit smoking after being a heavy smoker for more than 40 years.

He had been on holiday in Spain when he was diagnosed with pneumonia, and doctors noticed how much his lungs had deteriorated due to the effects of smoking.

However, the nicotine gum he replaced cigarettes with was found in 2023 to have played a part in increasing his blood pressure.

Speaking at the time, he said: ‘Six years ago I bit the bullet and replaced my 40-a-day habit with sheet after sheet of full-strength nicotine gum.

‘And this week a doctor said it’s causing a worrying rise in my blood pressure and that if I don’t pack it in soon, I will suffer from an agonising and premature death.’